Tax Refund Desk

Injured spouse Form 8379: how to get your share of a joint refund back

Injured spouse Form 8379 explained: who qualifies, filing with the return or later, how the allocation works, processing times and the filing deadline.

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Read the full guide: Injured Spouse Form 8379: Get Your Share of a Joint Refund

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Injured spouse Form 8379: how to get your share of a joint refund back

Injured spouse Form 8379 lets a spouse on a joint return recover their share of a refund that was, or will be, taken for the other spouse's past-due debt.

Form: Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation.

Covers debts for: Federal tax, state income tax, state unemployment, child support, federal non-tax debt.

Processing, e-filed with return: About 11 weeks.

Part I of the form walks you through eligibility. In practice you need all three of the following.

You have three ways to file. The best one depends on whether you already know the debt exists.

Part III of the form asks you to divide each item on the joint return between the two of you, as if you had filed separate returns.

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